Michael Steele sure has an interesting idea for how to rebrand the Republican Party: Loudly announcing at CPAC that they messed up, and pledging to do better now.

“Tonight, we tell America: we know the past, we know we did wrong. My bad,” said Steele. “But we go forward in appreciation of the values that brought us to this point.”

But Steele rejected the idea that the recent elections meant the ideological ground had shifted. “I am here tonight to reject the idea that defeats of the past are a repudiation of core conservative values and principles,” he said. “Nor do I believe that those defeats are a sign of things to come.”

And check out this latest development in Steele’s campaign to create a hip-hop image for the GOP. Michele Bachmann praised Steele’s speech: “Michael Steele! You be da man! You be da man.”